MONTREAL -- On Saturday, perhaps to celebrate the unseasonably warm weather, cyclists were pedalling along St. Denis St.'s new express bike lane. But not everyone is a fan of the new feature, which took away two lanes of car traffic.
“We have some difficulty to get deliveries and to send the product that customers buy online,” said Mycoboutique owner Pierre Noel, adding that he himself is a cyclist.
Anne-Marie Laoun said she wishes the city had consulted those who could be affected, such as her family's optical store.
“What I'm against is not having an impact study,” she said. “If there is an impact study, it hasn't been shared with us.”
“Part of being successful as a community is having open communication, being told exactly what's going to happen and when we have questions, to be able to have answers, to be able to go forward successfully.”
But other merchants were looking at the bright side.
“It's going to be much, much calmer, so anyone that is going to come on St. Denis is going to enjoy it much more than before. It was like a highway in the middle of the city,” said Code & Cafe owner Jacques Nacouzi.
Cyclist Severine Lepage also believes the new bike lane will be a benefit to the street.
“By car, you don't notice some of the shops. But when you're on bike, you go, 'Oh, I forgot this was here,' you stop your bike, you go in, you go shopping.”
